Ray Bande
Senior Reporter
MANICALAND cricket franchise, Mega Market Mountaineers, is blending youth and experience to accommodate an aging cohort of players approaching retirement.
However, the transition has carried immediate on-field costs, resulting in consecutive defeats in their opening Pro50 Championship matches.
The Mountain Goats suffered back-to-back Pro50 Championship losses against Tuskers at Mutare Sports Club last Friday and on Sunday.
Mountaineers assistant coach, Donald Tiripano, acknowledged that integrating younger players, while necessary, brings distinct competitive challenges.
Tiripano said: “We did not get the kind of result that we were looking for in the first two matches, but I believe we still have a chance to make it to the Pro50 finals. We will actually win it if we get there. So this season, we wish our supporters to continue supporting us, having in mind that as a franchise we are working on combinations, and also trying to blend experience and youngsters.
“We are grooming youngsters for the sake of the future of Mountaineers. We are aiming at winning trophies and having to balance that with the rebuilding phase. It is quite a process, and I believe we will come with results in the long run.”
Milton Shumba’s unbeaten 62 and a decisive partnership with Clive Madande propelled Tuskers to a six-wicket victory over Mountaineers in Mutare last Sunday, sealing their second Pro50 Championship win over the hosts in three days.
Chasing a target of 186, Tuskers slipped to 78 for three before Shumba and Madande put on 80 runs in 14 overs to steer the visitors firmly toward victory.
Sent in to bat, Mountaineers struggled to generate momentum against a disciplined Tuskers bowling attack and were bowled out for 185 in 43.5 overs.
Alistair Frost departed early for four runs before Takudzwa Nyamugure and Dion Myers stabilised the innings, advancing the score to 53 before the second wicket fell.
Nyamugure contributed 33 runs and Myers added 20, but regular wickets fell thereafter, leaving Simbarashe Mudzengerere to anchor the innings. Mudzengerere top-scored with a patient 44 off 68 balls, hitting three fours, and was the final batsman dismissed.
None of the subsequent batters following Myers reached the 20-run mark.
Four Tuskers bowlers picked up two wickets each, with Tinotenda Maposa leading the attack by conceding just 24 runs across his 10 overs.
Tuskers experienced a shaky start in their run chase, losing their first three wickets with 78 runs on the board.
Myers removed Nkosana Mpofu for 16 and Aliakbar Hamid for 26 during a tight four-over spell.
Shumba and Madande subsequently seized control, forging an 80-run fourth-wicket stand that shifted momentum decisively in Tuskers’ favour. Madande hammered two sixes and two fours in a rapid 48 off 47 balls before being caught off Michael Frost with the total at 158. Shumba guided Tuskers across the finish line alongside Munashe Chimusoro, ending unbeaten on 62 off 75 deliveries with one six and four fours.
Last Friday, Aliakbar Hamid and Tafara Mupariwa struck half-centuries before Milton Shumba maintained composure through a late collapse to secure a three-wicket victory for Tuskers in their Pro50 Championship opener at Mutare Sports Club.
Put in to bat, Mountaineers slumped to 26 for three, with Tinotenda Maposa securing two early breakthroughs, prior to staging a recovery to post 234 for seven.
Ronak Patel and Timycen Maruma spearheaded the rescue effort through an 87-run fourth-wicket partnership lasting 22 overs. Patel anchored the innings with 58 off 107 balls, while Maruma played a more aggressive knock of 55 from 79 deliveries. Simbarashe Mudzengerere chipped in with a valuable 27 runs before Spencer Magodo unleashed a late onslaught, smashing an unbeaten 44 off just 23 balls, featuring three sixes and three fours. Maposa recorded Tuskers’ best bowling figures of two for 32 from nine overs.
The visitors encountered an immediate setback during their chase when Brian Mudzinganyama was dismissed without scoring. Nkosana Mpofu added 35 runs before becoming the second wicket to fall with the score at 51. Hamid and Mupariwa then took command, accumulating runs swiftly in a century partnership that put Tuskers firmly on course.
Hamid fell as the third wicket with the total at 176, having blasted three sixes and five fours in his 75 off 88 balls.
Mupariwa departed at 189 after contributing 58 from 70 deliveries, including six fours. Shumba assumed responsibility for the chase as wickets tumbled around him, with the subsequent three batsmen managing only 12 runs between them. At 217 for seven, Tuskers faced lingering pressure, but Maposa stood firm alongside Shumba, who clinched victory by striking Mugeri for a six with two overs remaining.
Shumba finished unbeaten on 39 off 43 deliveries, whereas Arineshto Vhezha and Patel each captured two wickets for Mountaineers.
